Tuesday, November 24, 2020
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The Forum for Development and Human Rights Dialogue condemns the arbitrary measures and continued abuse of Turkish opposition leader Salaheddine Demirtas, former head of the People’s Democratic Party (HDP), by Turkey’s ruling regime, and its failure to implement the supreme constitutional ruling that ordered his release for the fourth time. .
The Forum state in a statement on Monday that what Demirtaş is subjected to is a direct result of his opposition to the policies of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and demanded that organizations call upon the relevant authorities and international authorities to intervene to save him from the continued abuse by the Turkish ruling regime.
The opposition Turkish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) said the authorities’ insistence on not implementing judicial decisions to release its former president is a recognition of the fact that it is a political hostage to Erdogan’s government, noting that this is the fourth time that it has deliberately failed to implement the decisions to release Demirtas, adding: “This confirms that there is an illegal regime governing Turkey… Justice has all collapsed in Turkey.”
The Turkish regime has refused to release Demirtas, who has been detained since November 4, 2016, pending investigations into charges of establishing and belonging to a terrorist organization, supporting terrorist organizations and promoting terrorism, despite a decision by the Supreme Constitutional Court to release him. .
Turkey’s Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that Demirtas’ detention period exceeded the maximum allowable limit, that his legal rights had been violated, and then issued a decision demanding his release and compensation of 50,000 Turkish liras..
On November 20, 2018, the European Court of Human Rights issued a decision on the duration of Demirtas’ detention, saying he was a “political detainee” and demanded his release, but Erdogan declared that the decision was not binding on Turkey.
Turkey tops the list of the most restrictive countries of the European Court of Human Rights in the number of prisoners of conscience in 2018, and has topped the list of countries with the least respect for the court’s decisions. .
The Forum for development and human rights appeals to the international and regional bodies concerned to intervene immediately to release Demirtas and work to stop Erdogan’s use of the judiciary to settle political scores, at the expense of the freedom and lives of opponents.
